Fading With Grace

There used to be a time when Tiger Woods held
trophies like the 2008 U.S. Open Trophy more often
than not. But age, a bitter divorce and injuries have
shown that we may have seen the best of Tiger.

It's ironic if you think about it, really. Athletes play in front of millions of fans every year, handling the pressure without so much as breaking a sweat. But when it comes to matters of their personal lives, they are as clumsy and awkward as a teenager at his first dance.

Even with age, it seems that the fame and power they gardner during their careers has kept them from making wise decisions later in life.

No, I'm not about to bash Brett Favre – yet. Although, by the time you're finished reading this, chances are he will have called a press conference to announce he's coming back.

This has more to do with two athletes that dominated the mid- to late-90s – Tiger Woods and Shaquille O'Neal. Both athletes made headlines this week – something that's not out of the ordinary for either one, especially with Woods' recent divorce and Shaq's ability to draw the media like bugs to a florescent light.

For Shaq, the three day retirement celebration is well-deserved. He burst into the league with backboard-shattering dunks and added a personality that is rare in NBA players – except for maybe Dennis Rodman. His only real mistake was the movie "Kazaam"– and even after that, most sportswriters are still willing to put him in the Hall of Fame where he belongs.

But while Shaq's three-day extravaganza was filled with jokes and laughter – both through Twitter and at his home in Orlando – there is nothing funny about what has become of Woods.

Like O'Neal, the media was drawn to this youngster. He spoke so eloquently and could drive the ball a mile, to boot. But as anybody who has ever picked up a club knows, golf is a mental game.

After Elin kicked Tiger out for cheating on her – why he would do that to a Swedish supermodel still baffles me – Woods has never been the same. It used to be interesting to see who would finish behind Tiger. Now he's just trying to make the cut.

I'm not saying Tiger's golf game is done. He has been battling injuries and the stress put on by his own stupidity. But it used to be a matter of when, not if Tiger would break Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 major victories. With Woods withdrawing from this weekend's U.S. Open, perhaps we're witnessing the end of Tiger's era.

The worst part of watching all this happen is that the Sunday the tournament ends will be Father's Day. Nike used to run commercials depicting a young Tiger learning the game of golf from his father, Earl Woods. Earl died a few years ago – a monumental tragedy for Tiger and for the world. 

Athletes get lose a step as they get older – everyone who has ever played sports will tell you that you can't stay at your peak forever. But one can't help but wonder, what would Earl Woods think of the way his son has faded from the spotlight as he has aged?